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City agrees to publish where blue-bin materials go after civil grand jury critique
Summary
The civil grand jury found San Francisco recycles a high share of materials but recommended clearer public information on where recyclables are sent and better contamination guidance; the Department of the Environment and Recology agreed to post disposition information and contamination guidance by July 1, 2021, and the committee recommended the amended response.
The Government Audit and Oversight Committee heard the civil grand jury27s report "A Recycling Reality Check," which examined what happens to the material placed in San Francisco27s blue recycling bins and how the city communicates that information.
Jonathan Goestan, the report27s chair, praised local recycling performance but said public communication about materials27 final destinations and contamination rules was inconsistent. "Our recycle rates are around 82%," Goestan said, noting the scale and complexity of processing at Recology27s Pier 96 facility.
Charles Sheehan of the Department of the Environment and Cara Gurney (0-waste outreach) said the department agrees with the recommendations and will develop web resources and update Recology27s mobile app to share where materials go and which contaminants are most detrimental. Gurney committed to posting disposition information and contamination guidance by July 1, 2021: "We'll post this information, on our websites and including the Recology's mobile app by 07/01/2021."
Recology representatives described Pier 96 operations, the market facility that buys material from the public, and the volatility of commodity markets for plastics and paper. Civil grand jury members and department staff warned that glass is especially difficult to recycle because of contamination and market limitations.
Public commenters from Recology, environmental advocates and the business community supported the recommendations and urged clear, translated outreach. The committee adopted Chair Marr27s amendments directing the Department of the Environment to publish disposition and contamination information (including multi-language accessibility) by the July 2021 deadline and recommended the amended resolution to the full Board, while continuing the related hearing to the call of the chair.
